VIDEO: Bystander bitten by St Paul Police K-9

“For some reason the collar slipped off the dog, and the dog quickly ran to the man and bit him."

The Minneapolis man bitten by a St. Paul Police dog says he will “definitely” file a lawsuit against the department after last Friday’s attack.

It was June 6, when Glenn Lonee Slaughter, 33, was going to work. He posted a photo on his Instagram page saying, “Well this happened today going to work today….. St. Paul police K-9 unit got the wrong guy!”

by Glenn Slaughter

St. Paul Police were responding to the Dayton’s Bluff neighborhood after dispatchers received 911 calls of a person pointing a gun at some homes near the 900 block of East 4th St. Police arrived at 1:40 AM, found Slaughter by his car, and asked him to lay on the ground for his own safety while police searched for the person with the gun.

“A short time later a police officer arrived with his dog,” said Steve Linders, SPPD spokesperson. “For some reason the collar slipped off the dog, and the dog quickly ran to the man and bit him on his right forearm.”

Linder says it took twenty seconds to get the dog off Slaughter’s arm. Police called for paramedics who checked out Slaughter at the scene and determined he did not need to be transported. Linders say Slaughter’s family eventually drove him to the hospital.

The department recently tightened its rules when police dogs can apprehend suspects amid growing concerns of bystanders getting bit. Last year, the city paid $2 million to settle a lawsuit against a man who was mistakenly bit by a police dog, severely damaging his leg. In September, Desiree Collins was taking out her garbage when a police dog attacked her while looking for a male suspect. A pending lawsuit she filed seeks financial damages and changes to the department’s K-9 policy.

Friday’s incident has St. Paul city leaders putting heavier restrictions on when police K-9s can be used, and they’re ordering a top-to-bottom audit on the unit.

“Last week’s incident involving a Saint Paul police dog is very disturbing, especially viewed in the context of other events that have occurred over the past two years,” said Mayor Melvin Carter in a Statement sent to WCCO Radio. “Chief Axtell and I are concerned about the incident and worked closely over the weekend to put in place immediate changes that limit the role and deployment of canines until the completion of an external audit.”

NEW TEMPORARY RESTRICTIONS

- K-9 officers must fully inspect all of their tools each day, while filming using their body cameras.

- There will be increased oversight of the K-9 unit by adding a commander.

- Police dogs can only be deployed for six serious crimes at this point, but now any other instances will require a commander’s approval.

- An immediate assessment of K-9 teams, including the handler and dog will be done every two weeks, if the team doesn’t pass then they can work.